Habvey wilcox



(No Model.)

H. WILGOX.

FRUIT J AR.

Nol 335,330-. Patented Feb. 2, 1886.

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N4 PETERS. Phola-Litl cgnp UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARVEY IVILGOX, OF LOS GATOS, CALIFORNIA.

FRUIT-JAR.

PECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 335,330, dated February 2, 1886.

(No model.)

To all whom it ntay concern.-

Be it known that I, HARVEY \VILCOX, of Los Gatos, Santa Clara county, State of California, have invented an Improvement in Fruit-Jars; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to the class of fruit jars and to a new and useful fastening for the covers thereof; and my invention consists in certain peculiar and novel features of construction and arrangemena'as I shall hereinafter more fully describe.

The object of my invention is to provide a fastening for fruit-jars which is simple and economical in construction and which may be readily and rapidly adjusted.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a perspective view of my fruit-jar. Fig.2 is a vertical section of same.

A is a fruit-jar, B the cover, and O the in tervening washer. The top or neck of the jar is provided with a flange or collar, a.

D is a bail or clamp, (preferably made of metal,) the ends of which pass downwardly on each side of the jar and are turned inwardly, bearing under the collar or flange a, while its body passes over the top of the cover, and has at its center an elevated portion, (1, forminga groove or guide.

E is a spring which lies between the bail or clamp and the cover. This spring, though it might be of any practicable shape which will afford the necessary pressure, is preferably made, for the sake of simplicity and economy, as I have here shown, of an elongated U shape and of spring-wire. It is convexed in the direction of its length, and is seated within and held to its place by the elevated central portion, (1, of the bail or clamp.

In adjusting the fastening the bail or clamp is first secured to its seat under the annular flange a, and the spring is forced under the bail, the pressure being effected by the resisting-surfaces of the bail and the lid or cover, so that the latter is held down securely on the washer and makes the jar air-tight. By slipping back the spring the fastening is released.

I am aware that a fastening is known in which a bail or clamp such as I have described is used in connection with a solid wedge or overlapping wedges driven under it and seated and guided in a groove or depression made in the top of the cover; but it will be readily observed that this is not my invention, for my spring is more serviceable and more perfect in its results, and is also dissi1nilar in its action to the wedges of the fastening above referred to. The making of the depression or groove in the cover is an item of expense, and is more particularly disadvantageous in the tendency to break, which is caused by the driving in of the wedges. Again, there is a certain shrinkage which takes place when the jar becomes cool, and especially is this the case with the rubber Washer, which, when old, deteriorates, and therefore, after the wedges have been driven in as tightly as is consistent with safety in the first instance, they have again to be driven in after the 70 shrinkage occurs, in order to tighten them up more completely; but these objections are not open to my fastening. In the first place the cover of thejar is made perfectly smooth on the top, the guide for the spring being in the bail or clamp, and there is therefore no weakness in the cover, and the employment of the spring has no tendency to break the jar. 1n the next place the use of a spring affords a constantly-adj ustable pressure, which provides against any loosening of the cover by the shrinkage above referred to, and for any that takes place the spring has simply to continue its pressure to keep thejoint tight.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A fastening for the covers of fruit-jars, comprising a bail or clamp secured to the top or neck of the jar and passing over the cover, and the convexed U-shaped springwire E, seated between the cover and the bail or clamp, substantially as herein described.

2. A fastening for the covers of fruit-jars, comprising the bail or clamp D, having its ends secured to the top or neck of the jar, and its body passing over the cover and provided with a central elevation at d, forming a groove or guide, and the converted U-shaped springwire E, seated in said groove or guide between the cover and the bail or clamp, substantially as herein described.

3. The fruit-jar A, having a collar or flange, a, at its top, the cover B of said jar, and the IOO washer C,in combination with the bail or clamp In witness whereof I have hereunto set my D, having its ends bent to bear under the (:01- hand. lar or flange a, and its top provided with a central elevation, d, forminga groove or guide, HARVEY WVILOOX. 5 and the convexed U-shaped spring-Wire E,

seated in said groove or guide between the top Vitnesses: 01' cover B of the jar and the bail 0r clamp, S. H. NOURSE, substantially as herein described. H. 0. LEE. 

